Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Conclusion 24
Fiftieth Report - Defence Equipment Plan 2020–2030
Published 16 Mar 2021
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Defence Equipment Plan 2020-2030 All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
We remain extremely concerned that the Department continues to manage a long- term spending programme on a year-by-year, cash-limited budget.69 Faced with funding shortfalls, the Department took a range of measures to balance its 2020–21 budget, including introducing commitment levels on commands’ budgets, restricting the introduction of new projects and closely monitoring in-year expenditure.70 Furthermore, the Department once again allocated all of its contingency budget at the start of the year to reduce the funding shortfall in 2020–21, limiting its flexibility to respond to any unexpected cost pressures. It agreed with HM Treasury that this was the best way to manage its difficult financial position.71
From: Public Accounts Committee, Fiftieth Report - Defence Equipment Plan 2020–2030 (HC 693), 16 March 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 31 August 2021 (deadline 16 May 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government states that it agrees with the Committee's recommendations that are set out in the response, each with a stated target implementation date, and sets out related work already under way.
- On affordability, it agrees that the next Equipment Plan report must demonstrate affordability, and says that report (Autumn 2021) will set out the implications of the 2020 Spending Review settlement and the Integrated Review.
- On transparency over the additional funding, it agrees and says it "will write to the Committee before summer recess" with a summary of investment and savings decisions, with a target date of June 2021.
- On defence cost inflation, it agrees and says it will write to the Committee alongside the Autumn 2021 Equipment Plan report, and states it "is committed to changing attitudes and behaviours within the Defence acquisition system".
- On finance capability, it agrees with a target date of March 2023, noting that "It takes time to both train and recruit professionally qualified staff, but numbers will increase over time."